A host-based printing system can include a host computer, a printer and a communication link that couples the host computer and the printer. The printer can receive rasterized page data from the host computer via the communication link, and print a page according to the page data received. Generally, a laser printer can be required to print the page in a continuous manner. In other words, once the laser printer starts moving a piece of paper through a printing mechanism, it may not be allowed to pause. Meanwhile, a laser beam can scan a photoreceptor surface line-by-line, turning on and off to control pixel formation according to the page data. Therefore, in order to print a pixel properly, the pixel data must be available to the printer at the time when the pixel is about to be formed on the photoreceptor. Otherwise, printing may fail.
Various techniques can be utilized to ensure successful printing. For example, the printer can include a high capacity memory unit. The memory unit may store the entire page data before printing starts, so that page printing can safely begin, as there are no concerns whether pixel data will be available to the printer in time. However, the high capacity memory unit may increase the printer cost. In another technique, the printer can print while the host computer is sending the page data through the communication link. However, the communication link may not have enough transfer rate to ensure pixel data will be available to the printer in time.